Upgrade StorageTrouble with Syncing: Report ID = 1018719986
I set up Zotero on a new computer (Win 7, x64). I installed Zotero stand-alone. I tried to sync using WebDAV storage and received the following error:
Downloaded ZIP file not found in Zotero.Sync.Storage._processDownloadedZip()
Many of my attached PDFs are visible, but when I double click them or use the Show File menu option, I get the error:
The attached file could not be found.
It may have been moved or deleted outside of Zotero.
I tried resetting the index, which didn't solve the problem. I tried installing Zotero for Firefox, and it did not solve the problem either.
I am able to download some of the attachments from my library on zotero.org, but not all of them seem to be downloadable.
I was going to try all of the suggestions at https://www.zotero.org/support/kb/files_not_syncing, but before I do, I wanted to check here for advice because I'm concerned about performing the sync incorrectly and wiping out hundreds of hours of research or losing hundreds of document attachments, many of which will have to be repurchased.
Help will be greatly appreciated.
Downloaded ZIP file not found in Zotero.Sync.Storage._processDownloadedZip()
Many of my attached PDFs are visible, but when I double click them or use the Show File menu option, I get the error:
The attached file could not be found.
It may have been moved or deleted outside of Zotero.
I tried resetting the index, which didn't solve the problem. I tried installing Zotero for Firefox, and it did not solve the problem either.
I am able to download some of the attachments from my library on zotero.org, but not all of them seem to be downloadable.
I was going to try all of the suggestions at https://www.zotero.org/support/kb/files_not_syncing, but before I do, I wanted to check here for advice because I'm concerned about performing the sync incorrectly and wiping out hundreds of hours of research or losing hundreds of document attachments, many of which will have to be repurchased.
Help will be greatly appreciated.
However, both the old computer and new one both have webDAV configured now. Also, I checked the webDAV location for one of the missing files file by getting the directory name from the old computer, where the file is accessible, and the webDAV location contained a valid file.
Do you have any other suggestions for me to try?
Does that information help?
Normally, I do not use that option. I think I know what happened. I changed the option right before hitting "enable" debugging. However, I don't think that I hit "OK."
> But maybe a better approach anyway, if you're not using "as needed" mode: in "at sync time" mode, making any change to the lastsync.txt file on the WebDAV server — you can change any character in the random string — should trigger checking of missing files on the next sync, which you could capture in debug output.
I'll check it now and post back here. Thanks for spending so much time on this issue.
The Debug ID is D1179056696.
Here's the latest id:
The Debug ID is D1585345511.
The Debug ID is D689899174.
If possible, you can try installing Zotero for Firefox (which will share your existing data directory by default), closing Standalone, and syncing from Firefox. I'm afraid there's not much more I can tell you. You can try asking your IT department if they know of any reason why downloading ZIP files would fail.
I already had Zotero for Firefox installed, and I had it configured so that it and the standalone client shared the same directory. I also did another experiment that confirmed what you told me, namely, that the data about a citation is being synced properly, which assume is contained in the .prop files, but that the attachment files, which I assume are contained in the .zip files, are not being synchronized.
I used two different computers for this experiment.
Computer 1 = Older Computer
Computer 2 = New Computer
Initially, I was noticing that files that exist on Computer 1 were not being synced to Computer 2. I wondered if files from Computer 2 would be synced back to Computer 1.
On Computer 1, I created a new citation ("Chemical fractionation and speciation modelling...") and added a PDF file to it, and then synchronized. I then synchronized Computer 2, and the new citation appeared there, with the attachments. However, the attachments couldn't be located. Therefore, I added a new attachment ("Wheeler...pdf"") to the same citation on Computer 2 and synchronized. The new attachment appeared to show up on Computer 1 after synchronization, but I got the "locate" error when I clicked on it. However, on both computers, any locally added files are showing up.
This problem did not start until I installed Zotero on my newly issued work computer and synchronized it.
- Is it possible that the Zotero instance on my new computer somehow corrupted my WebDAV files or Zotero data?
- Is there some way that I could test this, since I currently have access to Zotero on both the old and new computers?
- Are there any additional things I can try, like exporting all data to an RDF, performing a file history sync reset, or pushing all data to the Zotero server or overwriting all local data from the server?
I submitted a debug report in case you want to look at it.The Debug ID is D1173155162.
PROGRESS!
I think I may have found a reproducible bug in Zotero that exonerates my computers and WebDAV server. After noticing that notes attachments seem to synchronize just fine, I went to each of the citations above and verified that the attachments could only be located on the local computer where they were added.
Then, I added a note to each reference, but I did one note on Computer 1 and one on Computer 2, synchronizing each time after adding the note. After doing so, all of the other attachments showed up on all computers.
All though I have performed this trick only about 5 times, it has worked consistently every time. Also, the attachments that were showing up as "grayed out" are still that color, but they are found now. Finally, one of the PDFs opens just fine, but in the main pane, its icon shows as a snapshot icon and not as a PDF icon.
Is there a way that I can "refresh" all citations? Isn't that what a file history sync reset is supposed to do?
On computer 2, after moving an attachment from one citation to another and then synchronizing, all items that are grayed out start displaying normal black text, even on computer 1, after synchronizing, of course. Also, I have now found an example where even adding a note and resynchronizing does not fix the locate problem for a PDF attachment on computer 2.
Interestingly though, the attachment does not show up as gray text on either computer, but on computer 2, it could not be located. Also, even though the attachment could not be located on computer 2, when I moved it from one citation to another using only computer 2, followed by synchronizing computer 2 and then computer 1, there were no errors, and on computer 1, the attachment did move citations as well, and I was able to open it.
Does any of this make sense to you?
Even more major progress!
After changing the settings on both computers to be "sync as needed" and moving around a few attachments, it appears that I can now see all attachments on both computers.Can you let me know if any of this information makes sense to you, and if you have any recommendations about which sync settings I should be using? Also, please do not hesitate to let me know if I can provide any more diagnostics.
I love the Zotero tool, and have used it for probably at least 7 years now, but this recent problem has caused me to have doubts about its ability to synchronize properly. I want to recover that confidence in the tool.